Advocates Gearing Up For Another Try at Plastic Bag Ban

Backers of a plastic bag ban have been busy collecting petition signatures this summer. Environment Rhode Island says it has amassed ten thousand signatures urging the General Assembly to take up the issue once again.

Rhode Island would have become the first state in the country to ban plastic grocery bags under a bill that died in the last legislative session. Channing Jones of Environment Rhode Island says they are not deterred by their out-of-the-gate loss.

"I think it sends a strong signal to lawmakers in Rhode Island that this is an issue that’s on the move, that people care about it. And they want the Rhode Island General Assembly to act on this," said Jones.

Environmentalists say plastic debris is a growing threat to the state’s marine ecosystem. Wildlife can become entangled in it or ingest it. And because they’re so light, plastic bags make their way into Narragansett Bay.

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